Indexing new pages using IndexNow and cURL

IndexNow Take Control of Your Website’s Search Engine Visibility Part 2

Tired of waiting for search engines to crawl and index your latest content? Then this is for you.

IndexNow is an open-source protocol that allows you to directly notify search engines about new or updated URLs. By using cURL, a versatile command-line tool, you can easily interact with the IndexNow API and submit your URLs for rapid indexing.

In our previous article, “Auto-indexing URLs with IndexNow & GitHub Actions,” we explored how to automate the IndexNow process using GitHub Actions. This tutorial builds upon that knowledge, focusing on manual URL submission using cURL.

Your Secret Weapon for Web Development

cURL, a powerful command-line tool allows you to talk to servers like a pro, simply by specifying a URL and the data you want to send.

Why cURL is a Developer’s Best Friend:

• Versatility: cURL supports a wide range of protocols, including HTTP and HTTPS, making it a versatile tool for various tasks.
• Platform Independence: It runs on almost every platform, allowing you to test communication from any device with a command line and network connectivity.
• Simplicity: Its straightforward syntax makes it easy to learn and use, even for beginners.

Beyond the Command Line

cURL is more than just a command-line tool. It’s also a robust development library that powers countless applications. So, the next time you need to test an API, download a file, or simply interact with a server, remember cURL.

Obtaining your IndexNow API Key

We are going to use the Bing IndexNow endpoint (feel free to use any of the SE endpoints)

1. Visit the Bing Webmasters website and either create an account or sign in to your existing one.
2. Once logged in, click the gear icon in the top right corner. Navigate to Settings -> API Access and generate a new API key.

Note: Remember to keep your API key secure.

Preparing and sending URLs to crawl

Craft Your JSON Payload

Now, let’s create a file named data-to-submit.json and paste the following code::

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name: "Payload"
{
  "host": "yoursite.com",
  "key": "yourapikey",
  "keyLocation": "https://www.yoursite.com/yourapikey.txt",
  "urlList": [
    "https://www.yoursite.com/url/",
    "https://www.yoursite.com/url2/"
  ]
}

Replace the placeholders:

• yoursite.com: Replace this with your actual website domain.
• yourapikey: Substitute this with your IndexNow API key obtained from Bing Webmasters.
• yourapikey.txt: Update the filename and place it at the root of your website.
• urlList: Add the URLs you want to submit for indexing.

Sending the Data with cURL

Next, we’ll use cURL to send this JSON data to the IndexNow API using a POST request.

curl -v -X POST https://www.bing.com/indexnow -H "Content-Type: application/json; charset=utf-8" -d @data-to-submit.json

After sending the cURL request, examine the server’s response. If everything is successful, you should receive an HTTP status code of 200 OK.

Full list of Response Codes you may receive

Conclusion

cURL is a powerful tool that allows you to directly interact with web servers. When used with IndexNow, it empowers you to:

• Speed up indexing: Quickly notify search engines about new or updated content.
• Test API functionality: Verify the correct behavior of IndexNow’s API.
• Automate URL submission: Streamline the process for efficiency.
• Gain deeper insights: Analyze server responses for optimization opportunities.

Tags:#curl#indexnow#seo